Coventry United: Championship club saved from liquidation after last-minute deal agreed

Coventry United can now focus on playing again after a new deal to buy the club was agreed

Coventry United have been saved from liquidation after a last-minute deal to rescue the Championship club was agreed.

Administrators had said the club would be liquidated on 4 January if a new owner could not be found.

But a verbal deal with West Midlands businessman Lewis Taylor has been agreed, securing its future.

"I always wanted to get involved and it made absolute sense to make something work," Taylor told BBC CWR.

"The existing shareholders didn't liquidate - that was the deadline we all needed to reach agreement on," he added.

"Everyone in the virtual room wanted to save the club so, by about one minute to five - and five o'clock was the point where the club would've been put into liquidation - we all had the thumbs up."

Taylor, chief executive of energy company Angels Group, is thought to have invested an initial £250,000 into the club and is hoping to finalise the takeover deal "inside a week".

"Solicitors have now got to draw up contracts between the two parties so it's on us now to come up with a sales contract as quickly as possible.

"And then on day one we can get cash to the players and anyone else we owe money to."

'Relief knowing we've all got jobs again'

The deal comes after administrators BK Plus Limited - acting for current owners, Coventry-based business Mirius - announced on Christmas Eve that the club, founded in 2013 and in their first season as a professional side, would go into voluntary liquidation.

But after a busy period of talks over the festive period, administrators said in a statement they were "pleased" to reach an agreement for the sale of the club.

"Notice of the liquidation caused understandable disappointment to everyone connected with the club, not least the players and staff. Notice of the proceedings also gathered a lot of external interest and concern, and, resulted in offers to try and save the club from parties in the UK and abroad," the statement added.

"It is unusual to be in a position of dealing with parties wanting to a rescue a company that, for all other intents and purposes, is at the point of no return."

They added that they will "remain on hand to support all of the relevant parties with a view to completing a sale as soon as possible".

Coventry United boss Jay Bradford can now turn her attention back to matters on the field as she attempts to keep the club in the Championship

More than £12,500 was raised in support of the players who were facing the immediate termination of their contracts. But the prospect of a new owner has now changed their immediate futures, with focus now starting to shift towards moving the club away from the bottom of the Championship table.

"Relief is probably the first emotion knowing, effectively, we've all got jobs again and then my brain is immediately going towards fixtures and players and transfer windows," head coach Jay Bradford told BBC CWR.

"We knew the end was in sight - one way or another - but hopefully now plans can be put in place for everyone to come back to work."

Team captain Katie Wilkinson added: "The fact that all these girls get to play together and fight for the shirt is massive.

"It just goes to show what the football community can do, because it was everybody shouting and making noise that's brought it to Lewis' attention and now look what's happened - so we've got them to thank.

"The whole 10 days has been massively challenging for everybody. We're just glad we know now the club is saved and we can pull up our sleeves and get going."

WSL promotion still the plan

With the Red and Greens currently next-to-bottom of the Championship, avoiding relegation is clearly the main aim for the remainder of the season but, with a new owner on board, ambitions of playing top-flight football remain central to their plans.

"The ambition always has to be to get to the top," Taylor added.

"That's going to take many forms - it's not a straight line - but there's a great squad there.

"Some of those players would be knocking on the door of the Women's Super League and we want to be able to provide that platform and support Jay during the transfer window."